Page 64 of A Stranger’s Kiss

Chapter Eighteen

The Beauty of Night

Nicholas cast his eyes to the sky and gazed at the stars covered by the occasional wisp of cloud. He’d left the hotel an hour ago, unable to sleep, and he wasn’t aware he’d returned to Olivia’s music shop until he stood several yards away from the faded sign.

Slowly, he folded his arms over the black iron railing of the fence and listened to the sounds of the piano drifting from the back window. Her father was a talented musician. There was little doubt the concert would be a smashing success, and even less that it would lift Olivia well out of her financial troubles. Most likely, she’d establish a fine reputation as a music publisher and a discoverer of talent, as well.

A figure moving in the shadows halfway down the street caught his eye. His lip quirked in a grin. He’d recognize the sway of those hips anywhere. He straightened.

The figure slowed. Then, Olivia’s voice queried, “Lord Blair?”

“Why are you wandering the streets of Glasgow at such a late hour?” he asked in a lazy drawl.

She snorted, then arrived by his side. “I must work.” She tugged the fingers of her gloves to remove them. “I had music to deliver.”

The thought of her delivering packages rankled him. “Do you not have a shop lad for such work?”

She gave a derisive chuckle. “The shop boys I can afford are useless. I must save every shilling I can. I have so much music yet to print.” She took a step toward the door, then added, “Will you come inside?”

“I would be most delighted.”

Once the shop door clicked shut behind them, Olivia asked, “Have you news of the blackmailer?” Her voice sounded loud in the darkened shop.

“We are ready.” His eyes began to adjust to the darkness. “He shall not escape our net.”

“That is good,” she murmured as she moved past him.

“How goes the rehearsals?” He leaned his elbows on the counter.

“Florinda has the true voice of an angel.” She paused, then added dryly, “But then, you know that.”

“Truth be told, I haven’t seen the woman in some years,” he replied. “She could very well croak like a frog, now.”

Olivia snorted faintly. She hung her hat and pelisse on a hook near the curtain, then returned to join him.

“It was you, wasn’t it?” The moonlight lit her face as she tilted her chin upwards.

“Me?” he prompted with a curious brow.

“That day, in the shop. The day I was robbed. You sent Mr. Pitt on his merry way.”

Nicholas chuckled and doffed his hat. “It was my pleasure, I assure you.”

Olivia shook her head. “You have been prying into my business, Lord Blair. The matter of Mr. Pitt. The roof. Florinda.”

The roof. He’d quite forgotten. “Where’s the harm?”

She stepped around the counter. “I will repay you. With the concert, I will finally establish myself as a music publishing house to be reckoned with.”

Then, she was in his arms, melting into his embrace. The darkness only accentuated her softness. He smiled into her hair, the piano’s melodic chords the only sounds heard as he passed his hands slowly over her hips.

How he longed to play her body, note by delicious note. He breathed deeply, inhaling her scent, and then slowly, savoring each blessed moment, bent his head and dropped his lips to the soft flesh of her neck.

Soft. So velvety soft. She drew a long breath, one that hitched at the end. The sound seemed to pass right through him, leaving a trail of fire in its wake. By God, how he wanted her. Intentions? Aye, he had honorable intentions. He’d wed her, of course. That didn’t mean he couldn’t indulge in a little delight of the senses now. Something she clearly wanted as much as he.

He shifted lower, kissing a trail to her collar bone. The moonlight filtering through the window lit her skin with a silvery glow, enough to contrast the flesh of her square collar line and the soft swells of her breasts pushing up, teasing him. Her lips found his. He kissed her back. She was so willing and warm. She moaned, instinctively pressing against him.

Heat thrummed through him, the kind of heat that could end with her beneath him, a ribbon tied beneath her naked breasts. It was too soon, of course, but, by God, he’d enjoy straddling the line. He traced his tongue under the seam of her lip, then drew back to graze her lips with his teeth.